For Books and the People Who Love Them

Historical Fiction

Another new book! I swear, I will get caught up on these eventually. Today is Lazaretto by Diane McKinney-Whetstone: Isolated on an island where two rivers meet, the Lazaretto quarantine hospital is the first stop for immigrants who wish to begin new lives in Philadelphia. The Lazaretto’s black live-in staff forge a strong social community, and when one of them receives… Read more

I am not normally a big fantasy reader, but I enjoy a little something fanciful now and then. I enjoyed Douglas Nicholas’ previous novel, Something Red, and I was not disappointed in The Wicked. Thirteenth-century England is the perfect setting for this sort of adventure, with elements of historical fiction, mystery and magic. Once again, exiled Irish queen Molly is traveling the countryside… Read more

Finally, Gutenberg’s Apprentice: An enthralling literary debut that evokes one of the most momentous events in history, the birth of printing in medieval Germany—a story of invention, intrigue, and betrayal, rich in atmosphere and historical detail, told through the lives of the three men who made it possible. Youthful, ambitious Peter Schoeffer is on the verge of professional success as a… Read more

There’s a bit of a story behind my reading of Live by Night: I picked up the audiobook from the library months ago – probably closer to a year ago. I sped through the first 9 cds and then…lost it. I brought it in from the car, set it aside, and it disappeared. I was furious! Ransacked the house, went through… Read more

“After killing the red-haired man, I took myself off to Quinn’s for an oyster supper.” Michael Cox pulls no punches with the beginning of The Meaning of Night: A Confession. You are immediately drawn into the story of Edward Glyver, and you have absolutely no reason to like him. After all, the man just committed a cold-blooded murder. In addition… Read more

This is a rescheduled guest post — it was originally scheduled for Friday, June 15th, but the email reached me late Thursday evening. I was traveling all day Friday, so I made a little open space on the schedule for it today. I love the cover of the book, Her Highness, the Traitor, and I loved the guest post topic!… Read more

Contemplating this review, I started off thinking that This Burns My Heart has all the hallmarks of great historical fiction. It takes place in an exotic location (South Korea) in an interesting time period (1960s). It has an ambitious female protagonist, Soo-Ja Choi, who wants to do great things. There is plenty of conflict for Soo-Ja — with her parents, her… Read more

Okay, we’ve got a special mid-week guest post this time around. M.J. Rose, author of The Hypnotist, is stopping here on her tour and she’s got a guest post about the inspiration for her latest story. This is an amazing guest post! Gave me the chills. Check out more stops on the tour Check our her website, mjrose.com And keep… Read more

Susan Fletcher’s new book, Corrag, is historical fiction that does something I love: it takes an historical event and looks at it from a new angle, through the eyes of a new character. The story is based on the 1692 Massacre of Glencoe, where supporters of King William were responsible for the deaths of 78 members of the MacDonald clan,… Read more